This invention relates generally to personnel screening systems, and more particularly to, an integrated passenger identity verification and screening kiosk.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has recently mandated more stringent inspection procedures to be implemented by the travel industry to reduce the possibility of passengers boarding a carrier such as a plane, for example, carrying concealed weapons, explosives, or other contraband. To facilitate preventing passengers boarding a plane carrying concealed weapons, explosives, etc., the TSA requires that all passengers be screened prior to boarding the aircraft.
For example, passengers arriving at the airport terminal first submit to a manual verification process that generally includes presenting their boarding pass and a form of identification such as a driver's license or passport, for example, to security personnel. The security personnel then manually verify that the passenger has a valid boarding pass, the name on the identification corresponds to the name on the boarding pass, and that the picture on the license or passport corresponds to the passenger presenting the license and boarding pass to the security personnel.
After the manual verification process is completed, the passenger is requested to walk through a metal detector to ensure that the passenger is not carrying any concealed weapons. While the metal detector is reasonably effective at detecting specific quantities of metal, the metal detector can not distinguish between a possible weapon or other non-threatening items such as shoes that may include metallic portions. As a result, security personnel frequently request that passengers remove their shoes and place their shoes into the baggage screening system such that security personnel can visually verify the metallic object prior to the passenger boarding the plane and to also ascertain whether the shoes may conceal any explosive material or devices. Passengers are also asked to remove coats and jackets, passing them through the baggage screening system. This has the effect of making it easier for checkpoint personnel to observe possible concealed objects, such as explosives, under their remaining clothes, which are now less bulky and thus less likely to obscure the presence of concealed items.
As such, at least one known airport screening system relies on manual observations to verify the identity of the passenger and also utilizes electronic scanners and metal detectors to ascertain whether the passenger or the luggage includes any weapons or explosives. Moreover, each passenger is subjected to the same level of screening without regard to the threat that may be posed by the passenger. As a result, the known system is time-consuming for the passengers, and does not alert the security personnel when a low threat passenger or high threat passenger is being screened such that the security personnel may either increase or decrease the level of screening that the passenger or the passenger's personal effects are subjected to.